Is it the NBA Finals preview we were promised when the NBA schedule was set? Unfortunately … no. The Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets were decimated even before the league's recent COVID-19 outbreak robbed them of several key players. Anthony Davis is injured. Kyrie Irving is working his way back onto the floor. The Lakers haven't held up their end of the bargain as contenders anyway. For what was supposed to be perhaps the biggest game on the entire regular-season slate, Nets-Lakers admittedly looks a tad underwhelming.
But there's still plenty to get excited about once you've sorted through the rubble of the hype. This is, after all, still a LeBron James-Russell Westbrook team desperately trying to figure itself out on the fly. Brooklyn may not be quite as star-studded as it hoped, but the Nets are still the Eastern Conference's No. 1 seed and has gotten surprisingly strong contributions from the players who have filled in for their absent regulars as of late. You'll be disappointed if you expect this game to be what it looked like three months ago, but for now, it promises to be a fun couple of hours of regular-season basketball.
Viewing information
- Date: Saturday, Dec. 25 | 8 p.m. ET
- Location: Crypto.com Arena -- Los Angeles, California
- TV: ABC/ESPN | Live stream: WatchESPN
- Odds: Nets -1.5 | Over/Under: 223.5 (via Caesars Sportsbook)
Storylines
Lakers: Let's not beat around the bush here: The Lakers have been a colossal disappointment thus far this season. That doesn't mean they won't turn things around, but they need significantly more from their supporting cast than they've gotten. LeBron can only do so much. That's what's made this recent stretch of games so interesting for the Lakers. It became clear fairly quickly that veterans like DeAndre Jordan and Rajon Rondo couldn't contribute much to winning in 2021.
But the hardship exemptions granted to them by their recent COVID-19 outbreak have given the Lakers some room to experiment. Isaiah Thomas, for example, has been a success story thus far. The Lakers would prefer to tinker with their roster under better circumstances, but the benefit of the absences they've endured is that it has forced the coaching staff and front office to get more creative. We've seen more James-at-center lineups, for example. If necessity is the mother of invention, the Lakers are about to turn into Thomas Edison. They need to innovate to survive right now. To some extent, they've done so.
Nets: Without knowing who will be available for the Nets, it's hard to land on specific on-court storylines, but in a macro sense, Brooklyn's perseverance this season has been very impressive. The Nets sit atop the Eastern Conference despite not having Kyrie Irving all season and Joe Harris for a good part of it. James Harden has taken a step back and the front court is ancient.
Kevin Durant obviously deserves the lion's share of the credit, but as the Lakers have seen this season, one great player can't save an entire team. The Nets have found ways to manufacture wins as a team this season that other, more talented rosters haven't been able to match. That's what makes them interesting even without knowing who will be playing. The Nets have been cycling players on and off of the court all season. In that sense, this is like any other game for them.
Prediction
The Lakers are simply healthier right now. Health is relative in the COVID era, of course, but until we have a better sense of who will be on the court for the Nets, the Lakers should be considered favorites simply because LeBron James will likely play assuming his ankle is OK after the scare against Phoenix. The Lakers are depleted as well, but they at least have enough to field a competitive roster. On their home floor, that should give them an edge unless some key Nets can clear the COVID protocols before Saturday. The pick: Lakers +1.5
